Distillation of carbonaceous substances.



E. R. SUTCLIFFE.

DISTILLATION 0F CARBONACEDUS SUBSTANCES.

APPLICATION F|LED-APR. 12. 1915.

1 27 9, 1 ?2 Patented Sept. 17, 1918.

Inventor 76 y Witnesses- W M7414 W M din Imag- EDGAR BOUSE SUTCLIFFE, or LEIGH, ENGLAND, Ass'IGnoR T0 PURE coAL BRIQUETTES LIMITED, or. CARDIFF, wALEs.

DISTILLA'I'ION OF CARBONACEOUS SUBSTANCES.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Sept. 17, 1918.

Application filed April 12, 1915. Serial No. 26,928.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, EboAR RoUsE SUT- CLIFFE, a subject of the Kin of Great Britain and Ireland, residing at elgh, Laircashire, England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements Relating to the Distillation of Carbonaceous Substances, of which the following is a specificatlon.

This invention relates to a method for the distillation, gasification or coking of car! bonaceous substances, and has generally for its object to eflect the operation w1th economy and efficiency. Theinvention has especially for its object to efiect the coking of solid blocks of coal or of substances having thecharacter of coal from which blocks may be produced for the production of fuel by coking, or of blocks produced accordingto a process that broadly consists in the reduction of the carbonaceous raw material to a .ver.y fine state of division-or flour and in then compressing. this very finely divided substance into solid blocks or, briquets under such conditions that the block or briquet may expand under the stresses unposed in its production so as to produce a solid and compacted block or briquet, whlch is then coked so as to produce a hard and dense coke 'capable of use for the various purposes for which coke as ordinarlly made is applicable and generally for use as a fuel.

. The blocks or briquets produced ma be produced from finely divided coal wit out the use of a binder, while other bodies of the character of coal, namely anthracite, coke and charcoal, may be use as the raw material, and by the incorporat1on-w1th themof coal, pitch orother binder solid blocks may be produced on compression which by being heated in an oven ma be coked for the production of'a useful fue applicable for thepu'rposes for which anthracite, coke,or charcoal is usually employed, as well as for other purposes according to the character of the raw material'employed.

The present invention relates to a process of distillation, asification or coking, which is of special ut1lit in the-production of a dense and hardco e of the character lndicated when compressed blocks or coal or other carbonaceous substances are used in the manner describedl According to the invention I eflect the dis tillation, gasification or coking by the internal application of heat, or partly by the internal and partly by the external applica- I effect the distillation, gasification or coking in-:-"such manner that the gas destined for the internal heating of the charge next tion of heat, to the oven and its charge, and

to" be distilled, gasifi'e'd' or coked is first.

passed through one or more of the ovens in which the coking has been completed as far as required, so thatthe gas is thus heated before it is passed through thecharge to be coked, and I' admit a determined quantity of air into the oven or into the ovens. in

which the charge is to be distilled, gasified or coked, and I pass the gases and vapors evolved as the result of the distillation or gasification through another oven or through I other ovens in Whlch a fresh charge has been introduced, and by so doing, these fresh charges are heated and the gases cooled before the gases and vapors pass to the cou denser. By such means it will i be understoodthat the residual-heat of the gases and of the charge is efi'ectively utilized, wherebythe process is carried out with considerable economy. I

It Wlll be understood that the invention is not limited to the employment of any par-' ticular number of ovens, nor yet to any particular number of ovens in which the same stage of the process is simultaneously carried out, nor isit limited to the series working of the ovens as it is possible for the gas destined for preheating the fresh charges to be passed in series or in parallel through a number of ovens,- and in'series or in -parallel to be ignited or partially ignited in one or a number of ovens.

The invention comprises the s stem :of ovens which is hereinafter descrilied.

The invention is illustrated by way of example in the accompanying drawings, in

which- Figure 1 represents in diagrammatic sec- -t1onal elevatlon a number of-ovens in which the process can be carried out;

. Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic plan corresponding to Fig. 1; A

ig. '3 is adiagramma'tic section through two oppositely disposed ovens on the line a2 l of Fig. 1; i

Fig. 4 is a diagrammatic sectional plan through two oppositely disposed ovens on the line 0 w of Fig. 1; and v Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic end elevation corresponding to Figs. 1 and 2,

Each of the ovens in the system illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings consists of a cylindrical casing a lined with firebrick and provided at its upper end with an aperture 6, through which the charge is introduced into the oven and which is capable of being closed by means of a gastight cover. The bottom 0 of the oven may be formed of conical'shape, and it is provided with an aperture, through which the contents of the oven may be discharged, which aperture may be closed by a valve or door 06. Gas previously passed through or produced in another oven is led into the oven (1 through the pipe from a pipe fi the gas having first passed from the main gas supply pipe 9' through the branch pipe Z into one or a number of the ovens in which it is pro-heated, thence passing through the pipe 6 into that oven in which it is to beburnt for etiecting -the distillation of the charge, while air may be admitted into the oven from the pipe f.

lhe pipes f and e are connected to an out wardly extending part g formed at the upper part of the casing a of the oven. At the lower end of the oven a circular pipe 7b is disposed, which is connected'with the oven by the radially disposed pipes il in the system of ovens illustrated in Figs. 1 and 3, twelve ovens are provided for suc cessive working, and these are numbered 1 to 12 in the order in which the coking process may be effected in them, indicated by the arrows in Fig. 2. Three pipes e, j and 70, common to the respective ovens, are laid be tween the series 1 to 6 and 7 to 12, as illus trated in Figs. 2, 3, iand 5. The pipe i serves to conduct air, which may be forced through by such means as a fan, and air is supplied to the respective ovens on each side through the pipes f. The common pipe 3' serves to carry the gas supply for heating the charge, and the gas passes from the pipe j to the respective ovens through the pipes Z. The pipe It serves as the gas main into which the gaseous products of the distillation pass from the circular pipes it of the respective ovens, passing into the pipe is through the branches h, each of which is provided with a valve. Valves f Z and e serve to close or open communication through the respective pipesf, Z and 6, while the valves provided on the branch pipes k serve to cut ofi communication from each oven with the gas main in. By such means it is possible completely to isolate each of the ovens, to pass gas or to pass gas and air into any oven or number of ovens so as thus to carry out the method of the invention.

A convenient way of working the system of ovens diagrammatically represented in the figures as indicated therein, where in the ovens Nos. 1 and 12 the coke produced is being emptied, while the oven No. 11 or ovens Nos. 2 and 11 are being charged with comrea ies to be preheated before being passed into the oven No. 6.

it will be understood that the ovens Nos. 6 and 7 and 12 and 1 in the series represented in Figs. 1 and 2 are connected together and with the common pipes a, j and 70, so that the cycle of operations can take place in succession through all the ovens in the series.

t will be understood that in the system of working described air is admitted only into the oven No. 6, where the actual process of distillation or gasification is for the time being carried out. l he quantity of air admitted, however, is determined so that the combustion oi the gas may as far as practicable take place in the upper part of the oven under conditions where little if any free oxypasses through the charge.

i t l'ien coking blocks of the kind hereinbefore described I prefer to provide a conveyer such as m, but i may charge as well as discharge the ovens from below in a manher and by means that are well understood, or K may provide railspassing beneath the respective ovens by which wagons may be brought immediately beneath them for receiving the coke on its discharge; or again, the charge may be received into a quenching tank or apparatus.

It prefer to provide means for the admission of steam into each of the ovens, by which sulfur and nitrogen may be driven off, or I may pass steam through the charge in the respective ovens under conditions where water-gas may be produced.

The products of distillation may be passed to a condenser and washing apparatus and be subject to treatment for the recovery of icy-products, and the process may be carried out under a vacuum produced by the use of an exhauster, as is usual in the manufacture or" gas. Further, the air employed may be preheated, while combustion may be started by means of an oil spray,-and the surplus gas not required for use in the process maybe stored and used for any other purpose.

In the system of ovens illustrated in the accompanying drawings the process is carried into efiect exclusively by internal heat ing, but it is obvious that the ovens may be heated externally as well as internally.

I claim:

1. A continuous method for the distillation of carbonaceous substances in a number of ovens by the internal application of heat, consisting in distilling the charges in said ovens in succession and in passing the gas required for supplyingby its combustion the necessary heat for the distillation in one oven, first through another oven in which the distillation of the charge has already been efi'ected to the extent required by which the gas is thus heated on itspassage through and is not consumed, passing the gas thus heated, with air into the first. mentioned oven where a fresh charge is ready for distillation and eflecting the combustion of such heated gas therein for the distillation of its charge, substantially as described.

2.-A continuous method for the distillation of carbonaceous substances in a number ofovens by ,the internal application of heat, to the charges therein; consisting in distilling the charges in said ovens in succession and in passing the gas and vapors produced on dis-' tillation of the carbonaceous substance in one oven directly through fresh charge of the carbonaceous substance in another oven by which the said ga and vapors are cooled and part of the sensible heat of the gases or vapors is passed to the fresh charge, then admitting gas and air into the last mentioned oven to pass directly through the charge therein for effecting the distillation of the said charge, substantially as described.

3. A continuous method for the distillation of carbonaceous substances in a number of ovens by the internal application'of heat, consisting in passing the gas required for supplying by its combustion the necessary heat for the distillation in one oven, first through another oven in which the distillation of the charge has. already been efi'ected to the extent required, then passing the gas thus heated, with air into the first mentioned oven where a fresh charge is ready for distillation and efiecting the combustion of such heatedgas for the distillation of the charge, and finally passing the gas and vapors produced on distillation of the ovens by 'means of the vapors and gases produced on distillation of a charge in another oven, then admitting air together with gas previously heated by passing through an oven in which the distillation has been effected to the degree'required sothatthe said gas is pro-heated, then passing the preheated gas with air through the charge first referred to which has been pre-heated by the vapors and gases from the distillation in another oven, substantially as described.

EDGAR ROUSE SUTCLIFFE. Witnesses: ERNALD SIMPsoN' MOSELEY, MALCOLM SMETHU'RST. 

